Cord coating and wrapping machine



M r h 23, 37 ,c. A. FO URNESS ET AL 2,074,580

CORD COATING AND WRAPPING MACHINE v Filed on. 16, 1935 4 sheets-s eet if 72219780715. C'iiczrles H. ZJarraaas Jkn f7 Graef Mug, ML m1 MSN hMarch 23, 1937. c. A. FOURNESS ET AL 2,074,580

' com) COATINGAND WRAPPING MACHINE Filed 0m. 16, 1955 4 Sheets-Shget 2March 23, 1937. c; A. FOURNESS El AL 2,074,530

CORD COATING AND WRAPPING MACHINE Filed 001;. 16, 1935 Sheets-Sheet 3F.'// 7 20d Wrapper if/ g 0 I g9 chat/n9.

I 70 57 73 72 53 i 59 62 Z52 50 5/ Mai I IIL ;l Hm" 0- ii: LIE i I- l6.3 66 A. 1:: A {Mi 4 61 fizuerziorfi' Cficzrlesfl j o u 772255 March23, 1937. c. A. FouRNEss ET AL 2,074,580

CORD comma AND WRAPPING MACHINE Filed Oct. 16,1935 4 Sheets-Sheet 4Patented Mar. 23, Q

PATENT- OFFICE 2,074,580 coitn cosrmc AND WRAPPING MACHINE Charles A.Fourness, Appleton, and John M.

Graei', Neenah, Wis., assignors, by mesne assignments, to InternationalCellucotton Products Company, Chicago, 111., a corporation of DelawareApplication October 16, 1935, Serial No. 45,364

m y 4' Claims.

' This invention relates to cord coating machines, and pertains moreespecially to a machine for wrapping and coating cords used in themanufacture of tampons. I In a method of manufacturing such tamponswhich we have designed and successfully put in practice, a sheet ofsixteen-ply creped absorbent wadding is first repeatedly folded orcrimped on itself into substantially round or cylindrical form,

and then run through a wide mesh braiding machine which compacts andholds together the numerous folds and produces a substantiallyrounduniform article of about five-eighths inch diameter known as the tampon,pcord. This cord is then run through a cord coating machine which firstapplies a. concentrated starch solution to the surface of the cord, thenwraps a thin sheet or strip of cotton wadding on this cord, thenappliesa diluted starch solution as an impregnation and thin secondcoating'to the coveringsheet or strip, and finally compacts and reducesthe cord and winds it on a polygonal reel. The reel with the cordthereon is next placed in a drying oven in which it is subjected to a.flow of heated air suificiently long to thoroughly dry the cord. The,cord' is then cutinto tampon lengths, and, by means of a stitchingmachine, the closed end of a cord loop is drawn through and then loopedound the tampon about onehalf inch from'the uter or rear end thereof andthe twofree endsof the loop are knotted together. Finally, the inner orforward end of the tampon is moistened to render it pliable and thencompressed in a die and dried to give it a comparatively rigidbluntpointed conical end form.

Our present invention relates to a machine for performing the cordcoating operation, and a practical form of such machine is illustratedin the accompanying drawings, in which-'- Fig. 1 is a side elevation ofthe machine.

Fig.2 is a top plan view of the same.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical transverse section on the line 3-3 ofFig. 1;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical section through one of the duplicatestarch solution containers.

Fig. 5 is' a fragmentary horizontal section through a heating devicefor, the water jacket of "the solution container.

' Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail of an adjusting device for one member ofthe valve controlling the amount of starch solution applied to the cord,taken on the line 6-6 ofFig. 4. I

Fig. 7 is an enlarged plan view of a stationary forming tube by whichthethin sheet or strip of cotton wadding is wrapped around the cord betweenthe first and second starch solution-applying devices.

Fig. 8 is a side elevation of Fig. '7.

Fig. 9 is a perspective view illustrating the manner in which the sheetor strip of cotton wadding is wrapped on the cord. I

Fig. 10 is a sectional detail of a portion ofa Reeves pulley adjustingdevice. v Fig. 11 is an enlarged cross section pletely coated cord.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, A designates as an entirety a dispensingdrum on whichthe cord to be treated is wound, B designates as anentirety a container for the concentrated starch solution that is firstapplied to the cord, C designates as an entirety the forming tube forapplying the sheet or-strip of cotton wadding to the cord, D designatesas an entirety the container for the dilute starch solution that isapplied to the wrapped cord, and E designates as an entirety a receivingreel.

The spindles ll of the dispensing drum A are journaled in bearings in apair of upright end frames i2 forming'parts of a truck, the wheels l3 ofwhich are adapted to'travel on track rails l4, whereby the drum may bebodily moved endwise to maintain the cord as it is unwound, insubstantial alignment with its path of travel through the coating andwrapping mechanism. This coating and wrapping mechanism is mounted on agenerally rectangular upright frame structure designated as an entiretyby l5. On the frontend of the frame I 5 is a vertical forked guide I 6through which the cord passes into and between a pair of grooved .guiderolls i1, whence the cord passes .through the first solution-applyingdevice,- the structural details of which are best illustrated in Figs.4, 5 and 6. l8 designates a. vessel for containing the concentratedstarch solution, this vessel being surrounded at its sides and bottom bya water jacket iii. In the bottom of the water jacket is an electricheater of a known type designated as an entirety by 20, by which thejacket water is maintained at a suitable temperature to maintain afreely flowing condition of the starch solution. 2| designates anelectrically controlled thermostat, the bulb 22 of which (Fig. 4) isimmersed in the jacket water, this thermostat maintaining the solutionat a uniform temperature.

Within the container 18 and its jacket I9 are a pair of opposed tubularbosses 23 lined with bushing sleeves 24. A valve tube 25 is fitted tightwithin the bushing 24 and is formed with a tapered duct 26 to facilitatethe passage of the cord therethrough, and alvalve tube 21 has aslidofthe com-,

,these tubular valve tubes 25 and 21 are tapered so as to form betweenthem an annular V-shaped orifice for the fiow of the solution onto thecord. ,On the outer end of valve tube 21 is a grooved collar 28 engagedby an eccentric 29 on the inner end of a short shaft 30 that isjournaled in a bracket 3| attached to a member of the main frame andequipped with a handwheel 32. By

turning the wheel 32 in one direction or the and the size of the annularorifice between the two valve tubes is regulated. The solution containerl8 and its water jacket l9 are normally closed by a cover plate 33 andsecured in-place by a group of hinged spring-actuated clamps 34 that, inturn, are mounted on a ring 35 screwed onto the upper end of the waterjacket IS. The cover 33 isformed with a central upstanding boss 36forming a bearing for an agitator shaft 31, on the lower end of whichshaft is an agitator 38 driven by a pulley 39 on the upper end of theshaft 31 and serving to maintain the consistency of the starch solutionsubstantially constant. By means of this device, as the cord travelsthrough the tubular valve members 25 and 21, it receives a coating ofthe starch solution, the thickness of which of course depends on theadjustment of the valve.

From this solution-applying device the coated cord travels over asupporting pulleyx4li into the forming tube C. Before it reachesthelatter,-

however, it passes on to a narrow sheet or strip 4! of cotton waddingcoming from an underlying roll 42, the cord and its covering meeting onthe roll 40. The roll 42 is journaled in and between'the free ends of ayoke 43, the hub of which is hinged on a rod 44 (Fig. 3) between a pairof collars 45 on said hinge rod, the rod 44 having a threaded portion 46mounted in a threaded bearing 41 on one of the frame members andoperable by a hand wheel 48 so as to shift the yoke 43 laterally tobring theroll 42 in accurate alignment with the overlying pulley 48. Atension spring 49 between the yoke 43 and an overhead frame memberregulates the pressure of the roll 42 on a rubber covered drive roll 50by which the wadding strip on the reel 42 is unwound. Since the roll 42continuously decreases in diameter as it is unwound, and since it isdesirable to maintain the feed of the cov ering strip at the uniformspeed or travel of the cord, we provide a variable speed drive for thedrive roll 50' the structural details of which are best shown in.Figs. 3and 10. On the shaft of the drive roll-50 is a grooved pulley 5| drivenby a cord belt 52 from an adjustable drive pulley of the well knownReeves type comprising 53 to vary the effective diameter of the pulley.

For this purpose the hub 55 of pulley section 54 is mounted on a tubularmember 56 that, in turn, is journaled in a bearing 51 on one of theuprights'ofthe main frame; the hub 55 carrying a key 58 extendingthrough a slot 59 in the tubular member 55 and also extending through ahole in a rod 68 within the tubular member 56, so that the pulleysection 54 is rotatively fast with the tubular member 56 and rod 60, buthas a limited sliding movement on the member 56. As shown in Fig. 10,the outer end of rod 69 is journaled in an anti-friction bearing 5!withina casing 52, the end of the shaft being confined endwise withinsaid casing by a collar 63 and a nut 84. To the casing 62 is secured acover plate 65 in which is fitted and secured the inner end of a screw56, this latter engaging an internally threaded bearing 51 formed on ayoke 68 that is mountedon one of the upright frame members, the outerend of the threaded rod 66 having keyed thereto a hand wheel 69. By thisdevice the rod 60 and the pulley section 54 may be bodily adjustedtoward and from the fixed pulley section 53. The tubular member 56constitutes a diametrically enlarged hollow extension of the drive shaft10', on which the pulley section 53 is keyed, the drive shaft 10 beingjournaled in a bearing 1| on one of the upright frame members andconfined against endwise movement by collars Hand 13 keyed thereon.

As the diameter of the roll 42 decreases, the

frame, and shaft 80, through cooperating bevel gears 8| and 82 drivesthe split drive pulley 53, 54.

From pulley 40 the wadding strip 4|, with the cord lying thereon asshown in Fig. 7, passes into the stationary former tube C, the shape ofwhich is clearly indicated in Figs. '7 and 8, and by which the weddingstrip 4| is wrapped once around the cord with a slight overlap at itslongitudinal mare gins as shown in Fig. 10, the wrapped cord emergingfrom the tube in the form shown at the right of Fig. 7. Thence the cordwith its cotton wrapping passes into and through the secondsolutionapplying device D, the structural features of which areidentical with those of the device B, by which the wrapping isimpregnated and thinly coated and its joint sealed. From this secondsolution-applying device D the wrapped cord passes through a fixedtapered guide block 83 (Figs. 1 and 2) onto the receiving reel E. In theform shown, this reel is polygonal in cross section, for a reason thatwill later appear; comprising in essence two heads 84 connected byequally spaced bars 85, each of which is of wedge shape in cross sectionwith its pointed edge outwardly. This reel is journaled in and above agenerally rectangular bed frame designated as an entirety by 85. The twoheads 84 of the reel are fast on a shaft, one portion 81 of which issquare in cross section and the other portion 83 of which is threaded.The square section 81 exv tends slidably through the hub 89 of asprocket wheel 99, which hub 89 is rotatably mounted in and between apair of bearings 9| on one end of the bed frame. The threaded section 88of the shaft is engaged with a half nut 92 secured on a cross bar 93that in turn is removably secured at its ends on the bed frame by a pairof cotter pins 94 so that it may be readily removed. The reel is rotatedby mechanism later described, and as it is rotated it movesslowlyendwise under the pull of the threaded section 88 of the shaft inits half nut 92 so as to lay a uniform spiral of the cord thereon. Whenthe reel is loaded, the cross bar 93 may be readily removed and the reelthen slipped off the threaded end of its shaft, ready for transfer tothe drying oven.

The reason for the employment of a polygonal receiving reel is this. Ifa reel having a round peripheral surface were employed, it would imparta curvature to the damp cord, which would become fixed after the cordwas dried and this curvature would appear in the tampons cut from thecord, which is undesirable. By employing a polygonal reel, the cord iswound in a plurality of straight sections, as indicated by dotted linesin Fig. 1, forming an angle with each other at the points where the cordbears on the bars 85; and

in subsequently cutting the cord into sections for the tampons, it canbe divided at the angular bends, so as to avoid any substantial waste ofmaterial.

shaft 98, and on shaft Illl is a sprocket wheel I02 which through achain I03 drives sprocket wheel 90 which rotates the reel shaft. on theouter end of the squared section 81. of the reel shaft is a collar I04(Fig. 2) which, through'contact with a limit switch I05 opens thecircuit of the motor I4 and stops the machine when the cord has reachedthe end of the rel.

The agitator drive is taken from the same way shaft 80 as the'reel driveand consists of a pulley I06 on shaft 80 which, through a belt I 01drives a pulley- I08 on a short shaft I09 and on the other end of shaftI09 is a pulley IIO which, through a belt III and pulley II! drives away shaft 3 journaled in, brackets Ill mounted on the containers B andD. Pulleys IIi fast on the outer ends of shaft II3 through belts IISdrive pulleys 39 fast on the upper ends of the agitator shafts 31.

In Fig. 11 we have shown an enlarged cross section of the finished cordin which the body, braiding, inner starch coating, wrapping sheet, andouter starch coating are all identified under the several names thereof.This machine pro.-

duees the stock from which the tampons are cut.

5 scribed is not claimed herein, as the same forms the subject matter ofa-divisional application filed by us on the 24th day of July, 1936,Serial No. 92,308.

Manilestly changes in structural details of the machine may be resortedto without departing from the essence of the invention or sacrificingany of the advantages thereof; and hence we reserve such variations,modifications and mechanical equivalents as fall within the spirit andpurview of the claims.

We claim:

l.-In a cord coating and wrapping apparatus of the character described,the combination with a cord dispensing drum and a cord receiving reel,of means for applying a coating solution to the cord, means for wrappinga covering sheet around the cord, and means for applying a secondcoating solution to the surface of said sheet; said several means beinglocated in the order named between said drum-and reel.

2. In a cord coating and wrapping apparatus of the character described,the combination with a cord dispensing drum and a cord receiving reel,of means for applying a coating solution to the cord,'means for feedingand guiding a covering sheet into contact with the cord, means for wrapping said covering sheet around the cord, and

means for applying a second coating solution to the surface of saidsheet; said several means being located in the order named between saiddrum and reel.

1 3. In a cord coating and wrapping apparatus of the characterdescribed, means for wrapping 'a covering sheet around the cord,comprising a support over which the cord is drawn, means located beneathsaid support for rotatably supporting and driving a roll of saidcovering sheet and permitting the latter to be drawn over said supportin contact with the under side of the cord, and a stationary formerlocated beyond said support for wrapping said covering sheet around thecord.

4. In a cord coating and wrapping apparatus of the character described,means for wrapping a covering sheet around the cord, comprising a pulleyover the top of which the cord is drawn, means located beneath saidpulley for rotatably supporting a roll of said covering sheet andpermitting the latter to be drawn over said pulley in contact with theunder side of the cord, a variable speed drive for rotating said roll asit is drawn over said pulley, and a stationary former located beyondsaid pulley for wrapping said covering sheet around the cord.

CHARLES A. FOURNESS.

JOHN M. GRAEF.

